Iwashi Mentaiko (Sardines stuffed with pollock roe)

Iwashi is a sardine, and mentaiko is marinated pollock roe. My favorite bento place in Tokyo occasionally served this dish and I remember thinking it was such a treat! Mentaiko has a pretty strong and salty flavor on its own, but is often eaten inside of rice balls or with pasta. Sardines are tasty on their own too, but the tiny pink mentaiko stuffed inside the body make them all the more fun and tasty to eat. They were selling the iwashi already stuffed with mentaiko at Nijiya, so we just grilled them at home. The iwashi had so many little bones that after a while I just gave up on trying to take them out and ending up eating lots of them. This dinner reminded me of how much I miss my favorite bento place!